Here and Now
by sltoocoolish
Summary: A new fighter has arrive and the revelations that he will bring are going to cause Gohan to wonder if Saiyaman is the only thing that he needs to hide. G/V, past G(K)/B, V/B, G(K)/CC
1. A difficult past

Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ or any of the characters that appear on the show (though I wish I did!) I do own the characters, Syaoran, Gokan, Andy and Sez however. I also don't own the song "It's not easy being me" by David Gray.  
  
Author's Note: This is my first DBZ fanfic so forgive me for this story. I've written a lot more on it but I want your opinion before I put the rest up. The rating is for later chapters.  
  
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1 Here and Now  
  
  
  
A DragonBall Z fanfiction  
  
by sl_toocoolish  
  
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As the large and now seemingly obsolete aircraft glided down into the still functioning airport, a pair of youthful eyes gazed at the city below him from the cockpit.  
  
"So this is where my folks live then," he muttered to himself as he set about helping his adoptive father prepare for landing, "May as well sort myself out before I meet them."  
  
  
  
"You all set to go then Syaoran?" the older man asked. Looking around him, the young man nodded his head.  
  
''I think so Papa Bear." he replied, a sad smile on his face, ''I want to thank you for everything that you and Ma have done for me."  
  
His father smiled and pulled the young man into a light hug, ''You don't have to thank me for anything Syaoran, just having you in our lives is thanks enough." at this he stepped back, "And when you see my cousin, tell her that."  
  
"I will Papa bear. Thank you."  
  
And with that Syaoran picked up his bag and walked up the stairs to the entrance to the university.  
  
''I'm glad you've finally decided to do something with your brains." his father muttered as he turned and called a taxi back to the airport. Syaoran took a deep breath before he walked through the front door and was immediately assaulted by the crowds of younger students.  
  
"Why did I decide to transfer?" Syaoran groaned as he gripped the strap of his bag tighter and walked up to the office desk.  
  
"I'd like to pick up my schedule." he said to the lady behind the desk.  
  
''Name?"  
  
"Syaoran Briefs."  
  
  
  
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''Trunks, will you leave your little sister alone." Bulma Briefs called out to her son who was bored and thought it fun to keep his sister up past her bedtime.  
  
"Alright Mum." the young saiyan relented and sat in front of the T.V. quietly. Bra's wail broke Bulma's attention from her 9-year-old son to her 6-month-old daughter. Bulma sighed as she remembered how Trunks was never that loud at Bra's age, although she did have a different set of lungs on her.  
  
''It's alright honey." she whispered soothingly as she patted Bra's back. It wasn't too long before the baby saiyan was fast asleep.  
  
It wasn't 3 minutes before Vegeta waltzed through the door, sweat pouring off of him.  
  
"You going to make me dinner woman, or am I going to have to go over to Chi- Chi's place again for a decent meal?"  
  
"You should know by now how to cook a meal Vegeta, just take a pack out of the freezer and put it in the microwave." Bulma replied, trying not to laugh when Vegeta's face formed a scowl at the mention at the evil tyrant.  
  
''Alright, fine! But you really should take lessons from Kakarotto's mate. She really knows how to cook for a Saiyan appetite." Vegeta replied before giving his son a pat on the head as walked into the kitchen. Bulma just shook her head as she sat down on the couch and closed her eyes. No, she wasn't going to cry. Not this year. She hadn't cried for ages on this day. Her eyelids filled with wonderful memories about a time that had long since been forgotten, but the painful ones that accompanied them weren't far behind.  
  
Seeing her firstborn son being held in his father's arms, when he completed his first kata at the age of just 6 months when he was just able to walk and when he copied his father and made his first energy blast at just 1 year of age. But there was the one day her life was torn in two, she had to denounce the man that she loved and send their son to a place where he would never see them again or hear of their names for the love that Bulma and the man shared was now forbidden.  
  
Tears formed in the corner of Bulma's eyes as she recalled the scene that sealed their family's fate...  
  
The now 2-year-old Syaoran was bounding down the stairs to the main foyer of the Capsule Corporation when there was a knock at the door. He watched as his grandfather opened the door and a familiar head of hair popped in through the frame.  
  
"Daddy!" he yelled as he launched himself at the large man, "I saw you on T.V. How could you let a weak woman like that beat you?"  
  
His father smiled warmly at him before saying, "She was actually quite strong Syaoran, but I didn't want to hurt her."  
  
"Why haven't you been back for 3 days dad? You could have flown home and we could have done some training!" he complained, his lip forming a pout. Just then Bulma stepped out of the kitchen where she had been talking to his Uncle Boxer and Aunty Silk.  
  
"Oh, so you finally decided to make an appearance!" She yelled at the man standing there, a sad look on his face, "I hope you've had enough time to say goodbye to daddy Syaoran 'coz daddy can't be with us anymore."  
  
Tears welled up in young Syaroran's eyes as he tried to comprehend what his mum had just said.  
  
"You leaving us daddy?"  
  
Bulma tried desperately to hide the tears that were welling up in her eyes. She could see that his face was filled with guilt and regret and that was enough for her to know that he realized that he had made a mistake, however it was one that could never be changed. She felt regret of her own as she took her son's hand, this was going to be the last time that they would all be together as a family. She knew that sending Syaoran away was the best answer, for the trio to be forgotten about. Besides, how could she explain him to the others?  
  
As Bulma looked up at his face, it held no anger, only loss, pain and love as she said,  
  
"I hope you remember this scene Goku, because this is the last time we're going to see our little wolf again." 


	2. A new side revealed

Author's Note: O.K. I guess from the two responses that I got that I'm probably not going to get too far with this. But I just want to say this: THIS IS NOT A CCS CROSSOVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
  
So I like the name Syaoran and decided to use it in this?! Big deal! This is not the same Syaoran as CCS, besides, I'll be using his Saiyan name of Syamato from now on then. If you give me about 3 weeks then I'll have my drawing of Syam on my website and you can see how different they look. Well, if you have decided to give this fic another look, here's the next chapter:  
  
A/N: There is implied rape is this chapter, so if you don't like the subject, then just don't read it. BTW, Silver66, yes Syam is Goku and Bulma's son.  
  
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"Hey Syam!" a voice yelled out down the hallway and a smile came to Syaoran's face as he  
  
recognized it and turned to see his best friend from high school and long term training partner, Andrew Compaq, running towards him.  
  
"Andy! What are you doing here?" Syaoran replied as he shook his friend's hand.  
  
"I could ask you the same thing. You, a big rock star going to Uni when he's got all the millions in the world??" Andy quipped and was struggling to breath as Syaoran covered his mouth to prevent him from drawing attention to them because of his words.  
  
"Shut up about that remember!" Syaoran hissed and a sweat drop formed on Andy's head as  
  
the other boy let go,  
  
"Oh, yeah! I forgot about that. Sorry." He laughed sheepishly as Syaoran rolled his eyes,  
  
"Besides, I'm doing the aviation degree. Better to have a few letters after our names than just our pilot's licences. Does King Yama take resumes before you're dead?"  
  
He backed away a couple of steps when he saw the look on his friend's face.  
  
"Oh, gee. I forgot to do that after all of the training with the Supreme Kai. How stupid of me!"  
  
Syaoran replied sarcastically and Andy nervously rubbed the back of his neck,  
  
"But I'm assuming you're doing the same course."  
  
A grin formed on Syaoran's face and replied,  
  
"Is there any other way to go??"  
  
The two looked at each other with a twinkle in their eyes,  
  
"Hell NO!"  
  
Glancing at his watch, Syaoran's eyes nearly fell out of his head,  
  
"We'd better get going to get our books before the first class starts." and with that, the two ran through the corridor faster than the eye could see, leaving only a cloud of dust in their wake.  
  
  
  
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Gohan Son looked down at his outfit for the 14th time that day, wondering what it would be like if anyone really did find out who the 'Great Saiyaman' really was. His senior year would definitely be hell; well to him it already seemed to be as he was running late for his first day back at Orange Star High. Turning back to his previous train of thought, he counted himself lucky that no one had, although there had been a few close calls with Videl, like when he was rescuing Chobi from the circus who kidnapped him and also when Angela threatened to reveal his secret, which only turned out to be his mother's appalling sense of underwear fashion. Videl just seemed hell bent on knowing who the identity behind Saiyaman was, however a smile formed on Gohan's lips as he realized that it had been almost a year and she still didn't have a definitive answer that it was infact him, Dende knows that she had repeatedly told him about her suspicions. Gohan was so busy thinking that he didn't sense the figure flying up next to him or even spot them until they called out,  
  
"Yo, Saiyaman? Anyone home in there?" came Videl's voice as she watched him. She could tell that he was off on another planet as he was headed towards the poorer end of Satan City and not running off to the park where he usually went to try and shake her off. She giggled slightly as she saw him turn to her, a hand going to the back of his head.  
  
"Oh, good morning Miss Videl. I didn't see you there." he chuckled nervously as he rued the day that he let Goten follow him to school and fly next to him while he walked. Then he had to go and open his big mouth that he didn't know how to teach someone to fly but recommended Krillin to her. 'What a pain in the but it is now that she can fly.' and was greeted with more pain as he flew right into the side of a building. Videl tried hard not to laugh as he rubbed the top of his head,  
  
"Yeah, I guess you didn't see that either."  
  
She saw only the corner of his lips turn up before they returned to a frown and wondered what was wrong. He was normally so cheerful and a complete baka like Gohan, but that was what made them so great. She had her suspicions for almost a year that Gohan was infact the 'Great Saiyaman' but he really couldn't be if he didn't know how to fly. But him saying that he didn't know as much martial arts as his younger brother as his mum made him concentrate on school work could just be a line to fob her off, especially when Goten had blurted out that it had been their mum that taught him. Videl withdrew herself from her thoughts just in time to see Saiyaman slowly descending to the ground and walk towards a seemingly abandoned building. She shivered as her skin started crawling but with a quick look at her watch and deciding that she had enough time before school, she followed the mysterious fighter down to the ground.  
  
Gohan sighed as he remembered that it was this time 8 years ago that they had defeated Cell, and 8 years since his father had selflessly given his life to protect all of the people on the earth. Many of whom never heard of what the Saiyan warrior did for them, no one really cared… except for the other Z fighters. That reminded him, he'd have to try and skip the end of school to join Krillin, 18, Yamcha and the others to visit the shrine they all erected for him at the precise time that Gohan had finished off the monster that had terrorized them, thanks to Vegeta's help. Gohan shook his head as he remembered the rage that surfaced on the Saiyan Prince's face after the future version of his son was killed. It still brought a smile to Gohan's face at the simple act of love he saw that day. It was also this day that Gohan tried to do something simple to help the less fortunate people around the city, which was why he was here. Suddenly a scream pierced his sensitive ears and he sped towards the source. As he got there, he stopped dead in his tracks at what he saw… there was a man dressed in a business suit hustling some poor girl who was only about a year or two younger than he was. His eyes widened when he watched as the girl was struck down to the ground, then pulled up by her hair, the man with a grin on his face the whole time,  
  
"You want to sleep with everyone in this city bitch, then you can certainly accommodate your father then can't you?" he sneered as he started crushing her throat with one hand against the wall and the other was fumbling around with her skirt.  
  
Gohan's eyes narrowed at what he heard and saw as he felt his anger seep through his veins, welcoming it's sensation as it helped his reach the pinnacle of the Saiyan race that was sort after for so long, to become a Super Saiyan. He didn't even notice when his watch short-circuited and his costume disappeared, leaving him in his normal clothes. The first thing the businessman knew of anyone watching them was when he was knocked into the wall down the alleyway. His vision blurred as he saw a glowing teenage boy slowly walking towards him and he felt true fear.  
  
"Please don't hurt me!" he pleaded as he fell onto his hands and knees. He watched as he saw a flicker of emotion pass through the boy's eyes and sighed gratefully as he walked away from the man and back towards his daughter, powering down as he did.  
  
"Just don't let me ever catch you doing anything like this again." Gohan growled over his shoulder as he knelt down next to the girl,  
  
"Are you alright?" he asked softly, his features doing the same. He watched as the fear in her eyes melted away and she nodded her head.  
  
"Good." he smiled, "Do you think you can stand up?"  
  
"I…I think so." She stuttered and got to her feet shakily with Gohan's help. It was only as she stood up that she noticed that there was someone else there too, and was shocked to see the one and only Videl Satan standing in the background. Videl looked down the alley with a scowl on her face towards the businessman then towards the young man who was helping the poor girl to her feet. Gohan noticed that the girl's eyes were focusing on a point behind him and turned to see his long time pursuer standing there.  
  
"Hey Gohan, you did well." she told him as she walked up to them and helped him with the girl.  
  
Gohan froze as he tried to figure out how she could look through his outfit so easily when he looked down and saw that his costume was no longer there. 'Oh fuck.' he thought as they walked the girl out of the alley and onto the main street, 'It's bad enough that she was chasing me as Saiyaman but did she see me as a Super Saiyan too?'  
  
"I never though that you could fight that well after seeing you take on those robbers that day." she commented, a small smile on her face. At this Gohan laughed sheepishly and replied,  
  
"Oh, well. Yeah."  
  
"Hey Gohan, you coming down to the center again today to help out?" the girl between them asked, noticing that they were approaching the said place. Gohan looked down at her, then at the newish building in front of her and finally at his watch that said that he and Videl were already late. That was fine for her but he was always one to get in trouble. He sighed quietly as he figured that his mum wouldn't mind, she had already written a note asking if he could be excused to attend the shrine that afternoon and a smile crossed his face,  
  
"You bet. I'll even stay the whole day this time."  
  
"Good." she replied, "Lime was wondering where you got to last year, she was hoping that you were alright."  
  
"Well, unfortunately mum sent me to high school for my last two years instead of home school me. That's why I couldn't stay all day." Gohan replied and noted with a quick smile how Videl glared at him when he said "unfortunately."  
  
The three walked through the doors and Gohan immediately called out,  
  
"Hey Lime, where are ya?!"  
  
Videl's eyes widened when she saw a girl walk out of an office behind the front desk, her brown hair was tied up in a single ponytail and blue eyes held surprise as well as they thought they were looking at their twin.  
  
"Lime, this is Videl. Videl, this is Lime." He introduced them, an amused look on his face, which soon became serious. "Lime, I found Polar's dad harassing her again. He's still not listening."  
  
Lime's face became serious too and a frown appeared on her face, "How many times have you got to go after him before he gets it through his thick skull. Are you alright Polar?"  
  
The girl nodded her head shakily and sucked in a sharp breath before saying, "Yeah. If Gohan hadn't shown up I'm sure he would have raped me again this time."  
  
At Polar's words, Videl's head started spinning. She never thought that any human being would really force themselves onto another, it was just something that appeared on the news as filler and to keep women off the streets at night, like her dad had always told her. And she wondered how much Gohan really did do to help people.  
  
"Alright Polar. Why don't you go and sit down in the lounge and have a cup of tea." Lime told the girl, gently guiding her towards the door. Then she looked up at Gohan and gave him a quick hug,  
  
"Thank you for everything Gohan. You still haven't changed one bit since I met you when Cell was around."  
  
A vein nearly popped in Videl's head as she saw the scene infront of her. How dare this girl hug her Gohan?! 'my Gohan?' she questioned, then silently berated herself. He was as single as they came and he was free to choose who he wanted to go out with.  
  
"Can you stay for the whole day?" she heard Lime ask.  
  
"Yeah, I'll just skip school. I'm sure Mum'll understand." he told her, then looked down at his classmate who was still standing next to him, "Do you want to stay and help me Videl?"  
  
Videl looked up at him, shocked. Why would he want her there with him?  
  
"Uh… no. I'll just get in your way Gohan. I'd better get to school and I'll pick up any work you miss out on." she replied and went to take off out the door when she saw his eyes pleading for her to stay.  
  
"Please? You can help me with the martial arts classes. I get to be a bit rough and you can show the women some of your moves." he said, then realized his mistake.  
  
"So you do teach martial arts?!" she demanded and smiled when he dejectedly nodded his head,  
  
"And flying too?"  
  
"No, I don't teach anyone here to fly."  
  
"But you can?"  
  
Gohan ignored her question as he turned to Lime, "Where do you want me to start?"  
  
The other girl looked at her watch and smiled, "Well, you've got some time before the class is due to start. I think the young ones want to see you again."  
  
A big grin spread over Gohan's face as he heard what was suggested.  
  
"GOHAN!!!!" a young voice yelled out and the half-saiyan was surprised when a small boy about Trunks and Goten's age jumped onto his back. Gohan moved his head from side to side as if trying to look at who it was and laughed when the boy covered Gohan's eyes with his hands.  
  
"Guess who?"  
  
A playful growl came from the back of Gohan's throat as he feigned annoyance, then smiled,  
  
"Let me guess… is that you Matty??"  
  
The young boy pouted as he pulled his hands away and jumped from Gohan's back into his arms.  
  
"How did you know it was me?"  
  
Gohan threw him up and caught him a few times and Matty's laughter filled the foyer before Gohan replied, "There's only one person I know here who can jump onto my back from the floor."  
  
Matty laughed a little longer before his young face broke into a huge grin and said, "All the others are waiting to see if you show up so you can show them the light show."  
  
"Well, we'd better not keep them waiting then. I'll race you upstairs."  
  
"I have a head start though!" Matty yelled before he dashed up the flight of stairs. Gohan turned back to Videl, to see her staring at him, admiration shining in her eyes. At this he felt slightly uncomfortable under her stare and asked,  
  
"You wanna come up?"  
  
A bright smile came over Videl's features as she replied, "Sure, and let's see who's faster."  
  
before pushing him back towards the doors.  
  
"Come on that's not fair." He retorted as he ran up the stairs after the other two.  
  
"I can't believe that you still won!" Videl complained as she regained her breath. Matty was laughing as he was sitting on the floor infront of her, his eyes focused on Gohan, who was  
  
standing at the front of the room. Suddenly, the room was filled with a bright glow and Videl snapped her head up to see that the source was in Gohan's hands, then without warning another two small balls of light appeared as well and were soon zooming around the room.  
  
"I told you this would be cool!" she heard Matty tell the kids around him. Her attention was then taken to the faces that she saw looking through the window, the children's mothers. But what shocked her was that none of them looked any older than her or Gohan. It was then that she realized that it was all well and good to try and get rid of crime but it never really helped unless you also helped the victims of the crimes too. She could see that Gohan knew this, apparently ever since Cell was around, maybe even before that. What Videl wanted to know was who taught Gohan about this. 


	3. Explanations and a mystery

Author's Note: I seem to be doing these a bit too much *sighs* Oh well! Just to answer Penchy-chan's question: Trunks was born in the right time… Heck with it, I'll just do this  
  
Ages: Gohan 18  
  
Videl 18  
  
Syam 24  
  
Goten 8  
  
Trunks 9  
  
Andy 24  
  
Gokan 4  
  
I hope that answers your question and you'll see about the rock star thing later. I'm not going to put the other Z fighter's ages up 'coz I don't want an angry Chichi and Bulma on my hands! :P  
  
Anyways, if anymore questions arise, feel free to ask and on with the story…  
  
  
  
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"Oh come on Grand Kai, teach me!!!" Goku pleaded loudly, his face contorting in what seemed like pain, "I'm getting bored!"  
  
The soul survivor of the first Maijin Buu attack sighed while a sweat drop formed on the back of his head,  
  
"Look I told you before Goku, your body isn't strong enough yet." He replied, lying through his teeth while thinking, 'How in the HFIL could someone get to be stronger than me? I knew that one fighter of East Kai's was almost as strong, but the man in front of me is something else.'  
  
King Kai just sniggered as he watched the scene before him. He knew that the reason that the Grand Kai wasn't willing to train Goku was that he had grown slow and weaker in his relatively old age. Baba, who was sitting on her crystal ball next to him, gave him a quick glance and the two smirked at each other. She knew too, but neither was willing to say anything, less they get punished or something worse.  
  
"Well, how about we let the wish that the young boy Syaoran made happen?" Baba suggested, looking at Grand Kai, "Goku will be able to return here now anytime he wants, so you can always keep a tabs on him."  
  
At the name Syaoran, Goku's head popped up in surprise.  
  
"Huh?"  
  
The Grand Kai welcomed this change of subject and cleared his throat before he started his story.  
  
"Well, 2 years ago the Supreme Kai came to us and relayed the bad news that an evil who we thought long defeated had been reawaken by the son of it's creator, Babidi. He had been waiting for a long time for this, to seek his father's revenge on the planet Earth. With the Supreme Kai's help, he was able to collect enough energy to at least partially fill the appetite of this horrible creature…"  
  
"Why did the Supreme Kai do that?" Goku asked, interrupting the storyteller.  
  
"So that he could locate Babidi and Maijin Buu." The Grand Kai replied, "He managed to collect most of the energy from the fighters at the last World Martial Arts tournament however, it was still not enough. That was when the Supreme Kai drew your son, Gohan, to Babidi's two lackeys and let them drain his energy."  
  
"He WHAT?" Goku yelled.  
  
"Don't worry, he was unharmed and his memory of the incident was erased. He was healed by the Supreme Kai's bodyguard, Kabito. With this, the Supreme Kai was able to track down the evil wizard however, he had miscalculated in his plan and a young man with grayish/blue hair sensed the energy of Maijin Buu as well and he and his friend decided to check it out. Babidi was able to suck most of the energy out of Syaoran and his friend, Andy, which was more than enough to power Maijin Buu up to his complete stage. Unfortunately for Syaoran, he tried to fight Buu when he wasn't at his peak and was quickly defeated and Dibora, the king of the demon world, turned his friend into stone. However, at least Andy was safe at that point. After Syaoran's death, the Supreme Kai paused the time on earth, trapping Buu and Babidi until he could figure out how to defeat them.  
  
The answer came from Syaoran.  
  
Ancestor Kai was able to awaken his hidden potential, however and surprisingly, he had managed to do most of it himself. It only took a little more prodding before he was able to reach one of the highest levels of your race at this point, Super Saiyan 4. This was the only thing that would be able to defeat Buu without much effort being exerted. In a noble sacrifice, Ancestor Kai gave up his life and gave it to Syaoran so he would be able to defeat Buu yet the last thing he said to any of us before he left was if he was successful that his father, Goku, would be able to live again as well."  
  
Goku started at the Grand Kai as the old man finished his story, the traces of tears could be seen in his eyes. King Kai noticed this and a confused look came over his face. Goku had never cried about anything, not when his second son to Chichi was born and he wasn't able to be there, not when he was proud of Gohan for defeating Cell… nothing. Yet news of the young man who saved the earth last time was enough to bring this great warrior to his knees in tears.  
  
"I can't believe after all this time…" Goku sobbed, "He still loves me, and believes in me."  
  
  
  
  
  
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Videl was laughing along with the young kids as they all tried to climb on top of Gohan and punch the living daylights out of him. For his part, Gohan was pretending that they were actually hurting him and was groaning in 'pain' as they continued their torment.  
  
"OK you little vultures and not so little vultures," he said as he eyed Videl with a smirk on his face, "I think it's time for Hi-5."  
  
At this, the younger kids cheered where the older ones just groaned at the mention of the classic children's program.  
  
"I'll see you guys later." he told them and went to walk out of the room when a small hand tugged on his trousers. When he looked down he saw a small blonde haired girl, about the age of 3, she looked so much like Marron that it tugged at Gohan's heart. He knew about her history, how her father had been killed when she was a few days old and her mother had fallen down into a spiral of drugs and alcohol as she tried to get over her husband's death. Unfortunately, her mother hadn't been able to identify that she had a problem and died when Yuki was just 6 months. The young orphan had been taken care of by the center ever since.  
  
"What's up Yuki?" Gohan asked as he picked the girl up and swung her around like an aeroplane. The young girl giggled before telling him,  
  
"Can you put the parade with Mr Hercule on T.V.?"  
  
Videl noticed Gohan's face fall slightly before his smile returned as the girl said this and made a note to ask him about it later.  
  
"Sure we can." he told her then turned to the rest of the kids, "Who else wants to?"  
  
Gohan chuckled quietly as he saw the rest of the kids hands came up.  
  
"Alright, you guys win." and with that he turned the stations until he came to the right channel. With that done, Gohan left the room and remembered Videl was with him and her father's parade was on soon.  
  
"Hey Videl, did you need to go and be with your Dad?" he asked as she stood up to follow him out. Looking at her watch, Videl noticed that this was about the time when everyone at school would be making their way to Main Street. It also meant that she would have to stand next to him and end up with a sore arm and a permanent smile. She remembered how Gohan and Goten hadn't shown up last year, even though the young boy had said he wouldn't miss it for the world.  
  
"Yeah." she groaned then asked hopefully, "You and Goten going to coming today?"  
  
Gohan noticed her voice and silently cursed the day that Hercule Satan won the World Martial Arts Tournament.  
  
"I'm really sorry but I've got something important I need to do." and with his words Gohan left the young woman there, disappointed and confused. She had hoped Goten and his friend Trunks could cause a disturbance long enough for her, the two boys and Gohan to escape. 'Maybe Trunks will be coming, I might ring and ask Bulma if they are.'  
  
Videl left the center as well, desperate to find something to get out of the parade. 


	4. A close encounter of the wierd kind...

Author's note: I just want to say Gomen!!!!!!!!!!!! to everyone who might have taken offence to the sigh after I said that I seem to be doing this a bit too much. ^_^' I really didn't mean it like that. I've just been really tired after having to do so much flying at the moment.  
  
Newayz, I hope that you like this next chapter now that it's up. Sorry 'bout the delay!  
  
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"What are you doing this afternoon?" Andy asked as he and Syam walked out of their last lecture of the day. Syam looked at his watch then turned back to his friend.  
  
"Go home, get changed into my gi and go to my Dad's shrine."  
  
"You actually go and present yourself to them all?!" Andy demanded and was relieved when he saw Syam shake his head.  
  
"No! I'm not that stupid. I'm just going and hiding in the shadows. Grandpa Jock told me that's what they're all doing today." A sad expression came over the half Saiyan's face and Andy knew it was because Goku was still in the other world and Syam had defeated Buu.  
  
"You going to fly over and visit Sez's grave as well?" Andy asked and took a half step back at Syam's scowl.  
  
"Not today."  
  
Andy knew that the death of Syam's fiancée was a touchy subject but he wanted his friend to snap out of his trance,  
  
"Look, you can't keep ignoring her and Gokan forever Syam!" he yelled at his retreating friend's back. Syam heard his best friend's plea but desperately wanted to ignore it. His research trip to outer space had given him an acute insight into who and what he was. Part of who he was also translated itself into his relationship with his fiancée, his mate as a true saiyan would say. His bond with her made his soul complete and now she was gone, only half of him was living and that half longed for her again.  
  
'Maybe I'll head over tomorrow and see Gokan while I'm at it.' Syam thought to himself as he flew off to his apartment.  
  
  
  
*****************************  
  
  
  
Gohan frowned slightly as he looked over his clothes, maybe he should have worn his blue gi and not the copy of his fathers that his mum had dressed him in. At least she hadn't gotten into a gi as well, that would just be plain weird. As his head came up, Gohan smiled as he saw the faces that were already waiting for the Son family. Krillin, 18 and Marron, Yamcha and Puar, Roshi, Turtle and Oolong, Yajerobi and Korin, Dende, Mr Popo and Piccolo and Trunks, Bulma and Vegeta. This year came a surprise as he saw Chio Tzu and Tien standing there as well. Most of them had a happy, yet somber look on their faces. Even Vegeta, which was a rarity if it had nothing to do with him.  
  
Gohan noticed how sad Bulma looked as well, almost as bad as his mum did whenever they all did this. It was also Bulma who had taken care of him all those times before and she also looked after Goten after he was born up until he was almost a year old as his mum just couldn't bear to be around someone who looked so much like his father. That was why he and Trunks were such good friends.  
  
After everyone was greeted, the whole group stood in two lines and simultaneously started a taichi kata. The moves were controlled and focused, yet Gohan's attention wandered slightly as he noticed a familiar ki in the bushes a distance away. He could tell that Videl was trying to keep it down but Krillin must not have got that far yet but there was also an unfamiliar ki signature around as well. It felt human but it was too small to be coming from one, even if they could control it. Gohan made his mind up to question her before she got away as he concentrated on the kata again.  
  
Syam landed softly on the grass and walked towards his father's shrine. A shadow fell over his face as he watched his mother fighting to keep back tears, his maternal half brother looking solemn as he walked up to another kid who looked exactly like how he remembered his dad. There was also a young adult there who had the Son eyes, he must be Gohan. Syam sighed heavily as he remembered watching the Cell Games from the new planet that was home to the Nameks. He felt the pain that his oldest half brother did... it was that pain that helped him achieve the level of SSJ 3. That was then the Nameks sent Syam in the direction of the where Planet Vegeta was in hopes of helping him find some answers with this new formation. And it did.  
  
Syam's attention was brought back to the group when he saw them doing his dad's favourite kata for honing his skills. It was amazing how they all seemed to keep in sync, even the three young children. His mother really surprised him, when he was younger she always tried to get his dad to lower his amount of training and spend more time with him but when Syam started to train as well, his mum just gave up. It was always fun when mum was working on a new capsule or invention and dad and him came into her private workshop. He would always ask mum what she was working on, then dad would pick it up and it would break in his hands. Unfortunately for the two saiyans, they would have to go without food until mum had repaired what she was working on or be content with a capsule meal, but both Syam and Goku agreed that it was worth it to wait for mum's cooking. Syam wondered if Trunks liked their mum's cooking as much as he did. As he looked at Gohan, he could see the half-Saiyan's eyes focused on the bushes just over from him and noticed a strong ki hiding there. As his focus traveled there, he saw a beautiful young woman. A smirk grew on Syam's face as he wondered how Gohan could attract... the daughter of Hercule Satan?!  
  
He struggled to keep his anger and power under check. Wasn't it enough that her father lied to the whole world about the Cell Games, but she was blatantly intruding on a private ceremony. As she was closer to him, she obviously felt the surge in energy and looked around for its source. That was when Syam noticed the close resemblance between Videl and his late fiancée and he knew he couldn't stay mad for long. He could see that they had almost finished his dad's kata and as he watched he could see their emotions surfacing and Syam remembered the song that he had written describing his family's legacy.  
  
"I can't stand to fly  
  
I'm not that naive  
  
I'm just out to find the better part of me  
  
I'm more than a bird  
  
I'm more than a plane  
  
I'm more than some pretty face beside a train  
  
And it's not easy to be me  
  
I wish that I could cry  
  
Fall upon my knees  
  
Find a way to lie  
  
'Bout a home I'll never see  
  
It may sound absurd  
  
But don't be naive  
  
Even heroes have the right to bleed  
  
I may be disturbed  
  
But won't you concede  
  
Even heroes have the right to dream  
  
And it's not easy to be me  
  
Up, up and away, away from me  
  
Well it's alright  
  
You can all sleep sound tonight  
  
I'm not crazy or anything  
  
I can't stand to fly  
  
I'm not that naive  
  
Men weren't meant to ride with clouds between their knees  
  
I'm only a man in a silly red sheet  
  
Digging for kryptonite on this one way street  
  
Only a man in a funny red sheet  
  
Looking for special things inside of me  
  
Inside of me  
  
Inside of me  
  
Inside of me  
  
I'm only a man in a funny red sheet  
  
Only a man looking for a dream  
  
I'm only a man in a funny red sheet  
  
And it's not easy  
  
It's not easy to be me"  
  
Syam's hand flew to his mouth in a weak attempt to hide himself as he realized that he had been singing too loud. He held his breath as he saw that everyone else had noticed him and decided that it was the best time to get out of there. Folding his arms, Syam closed his eyes and a look of utter concentration appeared on his face before he vanished in the blink of an eye. 


	5. Memory, all alone in the moonlight

"Did you feel that Gohan?" Piccolo's deep baritone asked the teenager as he walked over to him. The demi-saiyan simply nodded as his eyes darted around the woods, trying to pinpoint the source of the energy that seemed so weak in one second and was so powerful the next, then there was that voice that was singing… It reminded him of his dad's voice when he sang Gohan to sleep all those years ago.  
  
"Don't bother searching for the coward, they've long gone." Vegeta muttered as he joined their congregation, the two young saiyans running over as well.  
  
"Hey Gohan, who was that awesome power?" Goten asked, wonder in his eyes. Trunks nodding his head in agreement, saying,  
  
"He would almost have to have been as strong as you Gohan. It isn't another evil man here to try to take over the world is it?" the last part in his imitation of 'The Brain's' voice. Vegeta snorted at his son and shook his head.  
  
"No you baka brat. This energy was pure, not tainted. Whoever it was is on our side." He growled and looked over at his mate. The look didn't go unnoticed by either Gohan or Piccolo and they glanced at each other before Goten tugged on Gohan's trousers,  
  
"I can feel Videl's ki Gohan. Am I right?"  
  
Gohan looked down at his brother and smiled. He was growing up to be more like their Dad every day.  
  
"I think you're right squirt, why don't we go over and see her?"  
  
Piccolo's face formed a scowl for a moment after hearing of the intrusion, then remembered that it was her father that was the cause of this all, not Videl. He chuckled slightly as he saw the look on Gohan's face and how happy he looked and thought that maybe it was good that Dende put her in Gohan's life. He watched as Tien, Chio Tzu, Yamcha, Puar, Yajerobi, Roshi, Oolong, Korin, Mr Popo, Dende and Turtle all made their way home. Seeing that the Briefs', Krillin and his family and the Son's were all talking, he flew back up to Kami's Lookout, thinking about how the person who's ki skyrocketed at the shrine seemed to be outraged… just like he was when he found out Videl was there. Piccolo concentrated on his memories from Kami as he sought to find an answer as to why Vegeta glared at Bulma when he was talking about the new fighter, for no normal person could have such a high ki reading as this one did. Suddenly he almost fell out of the sky as he reached the aforementioned memory,  
  
"Oh sweet mother of Dende," he muttered as a smirk crossed his face, "You really outdid yourself that time Kami. But why didn't I ever sense that Syaoran's strength was so close to Goku's?"  
  
********************************************************  
  
"Hey Videl!!!!!" Goten yelled as he launched himself at the unsuspecting fighter, causing her to topple backwards when he impacted. Trunks was there in a flash as well, intent on not being left out. Both looked up when they heard someone clear their throat loudly, only to see Gohan with a frown on his face,  
  
"How many times do I have to tell you two, it's rude to jump on people."  
  
"Sorry, nii-chan." Goten muttered, as he and Trunks climbed off the stunned woman. They bowed their apology to Videl then took off into the sky, Marron joining them as they went to 'look' for animals….. hunting them would be the more correct term.  
  
"Sorry 'bout that Videl. Sometimes those two can be such pains in the asses." He said, a hand behind his head in embarrassment.  
  
"GOHAN! WHAT HAVE I TOLD YOU ABOUT USING THAT LANGUAGE!!!!!?????" everyone heard his mother screech. The saiyans in the area flinched as the sound hit their ears, it was not a pretty sight when Vegeta nearly ki blasted Chichi to the Other World or when the Frying Pan of Death( connected with his head because of it. Gohan winced again as he heard the DONG resonate in all directions, knowing how painful it would be… and how much a pain in the ass Vegeta was going to be now. Then he remembered why he had come over here to begin with,  
  
"Videl, were you spying on my family and friends?"  
  
For the first time in a year, he actually saw Videl ashamed of something she did and almost laughed when she seemed to be more interested in the ground and her shoes than anything else.  
  
"I'm sorry Gohan, it's just that… *sigh* you're an enigma and I hate not knowing about everything. I hate secrets." She replied, her head still hanging. Her head flashed up and her patent glare was plastered on her face again when she heard Gohan laughing at her. This immediately caused him to stop and he waved his hands infront of him in defeat, a sweatdrop on his head,  
  
"I don't mean it like that Videl, it's just that all you have to do is ask. But if I'm not ready to give the answers to you, just don't press me, I might tell you later." and with that he winked at her and waved goodbye saying that he would see her next week, knowing that it was time to take his mother back to their place as her and Vegeta were close to coming to blows yet again. He dragged his mother over to Nimbus and placed her on, ordering the cloud to take her back before she jumped off, Goten going with her. Gohan was about to lift off into the air when Videl grabbed a hold of his arm,  
  
"Gohan?"  
  
The demi-saiyan's face slowly grew tomato red as he looked back down at her,  
  
"Uh, yeah?" he replied unintelligently and felt his face grow even redder when she chuckled slightly.  
  
"There's a concert coming up in the city in 5 days time… I was just wondering if you wanted to go."  
  
Gohan's mind weighed up the options, 'Go with Videl and have Mum bugging me about grandkids or stay at home and help her look after the terrible twins… oh, what great choices.' he sighed.  
  
"Sure, I'd be glad to join you. I'll just have to see if it's OK with Mum first… but knowing her it'll be fine." He grinned at Videl, who mirrored his smile as she knew what he was getting at.  
  
"I'll fly by your place at 3 on Friday then."  
  
Gohan hovered above her for a few seconds, waving before blasting off towards his house. Videl looked around her to see Krillin and his family waving goodbye to Bulma, who was ordering Vegeta to take himself and Trunks out of her sight. It was then that she remembered that she was supposed to be in the parade with her father, shrugging at the 'loss' she noticed that Bulma was making no move to go with her husband and son… who were no where to be seen.  
  
'What an asshole!' Videl thought of Vegeta as she walked over to Bulma, to see if there was anything she could do for the woman. But she stopped dead in her tracks as she heard her talking to the shrine.  
  
"Goku, you goof. Why did you have to go and do that? You could have taken Cell to another world and left him there." She cried, sobs wracked her body as she continued, "Syaoran was here probably to say hi. You can bet your ass that my father told him where we were. I can always tell his ki when he's around, it's so much like yours. He's got your singing voice as well. My dad also said that he's able to turn super, he has been since he was 5. I'm so proud of him and I'm sure you are as well."  
  
Videl tried to listen to the last part of what Bulma was saying but between her sobs and the fact that she was whispering it, she couldn't make heads or tails of it but with the way that Bulma was crying she could tell it was important and that the genius really missed Gohan's dad.  
  
"Bulma, you alright?" Videl asked quietly as she stood behind the kneeling woman. Bulma jumped slightly at the voice but calmed a bit when she turned and saw that it was Hercule's daughter.  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine honey." She said as she stood up, "I'm surprised to see you here though. Did you follow Gohan?"  
  
A blush crept up Videl's face as she nodded and Bulma smiled.  
  
"Don't worry about it, I won't tell." She whispered and winked at the younger woman. Bulma's eyes went misty as she looked back at the picture of Son Goku behind her and she fought the urge to cry again. She was startled when she heard Videl's voice next to her ask,  
  
"How did Gohan's dad die?"  
  
Bulma quickly brushed away a stray tear before she turned back to Videl,  
  
"Well, actually. This wasn't the first time that Goku died." She replied.  
  
"Goku Son is really Gohan's dad?" came the surprised voice of the girl next to her.  
  
"Yep. I met Goku when he was 11 years old. He was a really short shrimp." At this both women laughed before Bulma continued, "He's always there to protect the people he loves. I remember how he would never let anything happen to Chichi and I and with Gohan he's even worse. The first time was when his brother came and killed him, after that he trained with one of the other world gods and came back to help fight my jackass partner and his bodyguard when he wasn't as nice as he is now. The last time he was killed was by Cell."  
  
Videl looked up at Bulma, shock evident in her face.  
  
"You mean that Goku was there at the Cell Games?"  
  
Bulma simply nodded,  
  
"Yeah, Cell was just about to blow up the Earth when Goku took him to the other dimension, which destroyed King Kai's planet, killing them all."  
  
"I thought that my father killed Cell." Videl asked, one eyebrow raised.  
  
"Cell was able to come alive again." was all that Bulma said, knowing that Gohan was adamant about no one knowing the truth about the Cell Games.  
  
"Oh, OK." came the reply. Videl had a feeling that she shouldn't press the issue too much, something bad had definitely happened there and she was going to ask her dad about it instead.  
  
"You and Goku must have been really close then." came the statement from Videl's mouth before she even had a chance to stop it. She silently cursed herself when she saw the look of utter hopelessness on the blue haired woman's face,  
  
"We were closer than anyone will ever know." she whispered as the wind blew gently, sweeping her hair over her face that brought a smile to her lips. Then she remembered that she had one of Gohan's friends standing next to her,  
  
"But I do know that Goku will return to us one day. He's just not ready to give up his big adventure yet." Bulma told Videl, a wistful look on her face with her smile growing larger.  
  
"I can't wait to meet him." Videl said as she bowed infront of Goku's shrine. Bulma shook her head slightly as she kissed her hand and placed it on the headstone saying,  
  
"I'm sure he can't wait to meet you either Videl."  
  
***************************************************** 


End file.
